Seeds of Tomorrow

We Work It Works

Leveraging agroforestry and smart irrigation systems to restore land, enhance food security, and generate sustainable income, empowering communities for long-term resilience and growth.

Challenge

The community of Antintorona faces severe environmental and economic challenges, including depleted soil fertility from illegal deforestation, erosion, and unsustainable farming. These pressures have reduced food self-sufficiency, weakened economic stability, and increased vulnerability to climate change. At the same time, limited access to technical training prevents residents from adopting more resilient and sustainable agricultural practices.

Solution

An integrated model designed to ensure long-term sustainability that tackles the interconnected challenges of land degradation, food insecurity, and economic vulnerability through practical, community-driven solutions. It’s three main components are:

Establishing a community nursery equipped with solar-powered irrigation systems, rainwater harvesting technologies, and tools for tree and vegetable cultivation.
Providing technical training through a train-the-trainers model, with practical courses on nursery management, agroforestry, and resource conservation.
Implementing sustainable agroforestry practices by planting native trees alongside food crops to restore soil fertility, improve food security, and promote biodiversity.

Our Role

This project was co-designed by TEL in collaboration with We Work It Works (WWIW), a community-based organization with deep ties to the local people of Antintorona. In 2024, we visited the community to conduct on-the-ground assessments, engaging with community leaders, local farmers, and stakeholders to identify key challenges and opportunities for sustainable development. This visit allowed us to understand the specific needs of the community and fine-tune our approach to agroforestry and reforestation.

Through our partnership with WWIW, we combine their local knowledge and relationships with technical expertise in agroforestry, ensuring a project that is tailored to the community’s unique context. We also involve industry experts in agroforestry and MIT students from D-Lab, who contribute by providing technical support and innovative solutions, including smart irrigation systems and sustainable farming practices.

Results

The project will restore 8 hectares of land, planting 4,000 trees and 40,000 crops annually. This initiative will enhance food security and generate a sustainable income for the community through the sale of surplus organic crops. The community nursery will serve as a growth hub, producing enough to support local consumption and regional markets. Additionally, the project is projected to sequester around 95 tons of CO₂ per year, contributing significantly to environmental sustainability.

A community fund will be created to reinvest profits, further scaling the initiative and addressing shared needs. More than 3,000 people in Antintorona will directly benefit from this project, fostering long-term economic, social, and environmental resilience.

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Seeds of Tomorrow

We Work It Works

Challenge

Solution

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